See the moon near Jupiter October 7 and 8

Moon near Jupiter October 7 and 8

The brightest planet currently in the evening sky – Jupiter – competes with the light of a nearly full moon on the evenings of October 7 and 8, 2022. Jupiter just had its closest opposition in 70 years on September 26, when it shone in our sky at magnitude -2.9. Now, less than two weeks later, it shines just as brightly. But the waxing gibbous moon will be brighter, washing out nearly all the stars around the pair.

Jupiter has been hanging out among the stars of Pisces, not far from a pretty but faint group of six stars known as the Circlet. On October 7, the moon lies across the border in Aquarius. On that evening, Neptune is above the full moon but too dim to see without optical aid.

On October 8, the moon will be even brighter, with more of its face lit, as it moves onto the east side of Jupiter, crossing over Pisces into Cetus the Whale.

On the opposite side of the globe from the Americas – for example, in Singapore and the Philippines – the moon and Jupiter will be side by side and less than two degrees apart on the morning of October 9 before sunrise. Find a precise view of the sky from your location via Stellarium.

Hunter’s Moon

As the moon pulls away from Jupiter, it reaches full phase on the 9th. This is the Hunter’s Moon. Sometimes the Hunter’s Moon occurs in October and sometimes in November. It depends on when the Harvest Moon is, because the Hunter’s Moon follows the Harvest Moon. And the Harvest Moon is the full moon closest to the September equinox. By October 9, the moon has crossed over a jag in the constellation boundary and is back in Pisces. Jupiter will rise before the full moon as the sun is setting. As the sky grows darker, the bright light of Jupiter will eventually battle through the fading twilight and glow of the full moon for you to spot it.

Bottom line: You can spot the moon near Jupiter on the evenings of October 7 and 8. The moon is waxing, heading toward full phase on October 9.

For more great observing events in the coming weeks, visit EarthSky’s night sky guide